It sounds like a fairy tale, but once upon a time creameries discarded whey and buttermilk, giving it to farmers who spread it on fields or fed it to calves.
Now an entire industry exists to capture the nutritious ingredients locked in these once-snubbed fluids. One of the leaders in that industry is Davisco Foods International, Inc., based in Le Sueur, where veteran employees still remember the days of whey-splattered fields and calves suckled on buttermilk.
Lessons learned the hard way tend to be lessons remembered. Richard and Debbie Halvorson, who are tantalizingly close to profitability at Rainbow Woods, Inc. in Le Center, digested their share along a red-ink road since 1990. After nurturing two radically different product lines in three different communities for eight years, the Halvorsons now realize: Marketing means making more than one sales call.
CONNECT: What personal traits do you have that helped you grow Carlson Craft?
CARLSON: Being optimistic, which I think is related closely to having a Christian faith. I see the positive things of life. I have patience too, which is also related to my faith in God. I was blessed with good health, and again, I give credit for that to a Higher Power. I know of many friends who haven’t been blessed with good health and they had to retire very young.
While looking out his office window for a memory that isn’t that far distant, Jerry Johnson, founder and chairman of Mankato-based Clear With Computers (CWC), seems to feel a great deal of pride in helping move CWC from a $99-computer beginning to an industry giant. “We started with no money in the bank,” he says.
When future historians get around to naming eras and establishing turning points, expect 1993 to be a year students must memorize. That’s when commoners gained entrance to a domain previously reserved for Knights of Academia (colleges and universities) and the Ruling Elite (government agencies).
Ever tried to muzzle a ferret? What about a timber wolf? Probably not. But if the need arises, Cindi Gaterud of rural Janesville has already designed muzzles or hoods for ferrets, wolves, elk and other creatures. She helps veterinarians and a variety of animal-handlers minimize one of their major occupational hazards – puncture wounds from sharp teeth.
You wouldn’t expect a guy who co-owns two companies that together grossed $60 million last year to draw a rather modest salary and live in a rather modest home. Nor would you expect him to ride a Harley to work. But that’s Jerry Schugel.
If you still harbor doubts about the benefits of telecommunications deregulation and competition, consider Mankato Citizens Telephone Co. as a case study. If you want a stock bargain, consider Hickory Tech Corp., its parent company.
Some say there’s a sad and final note to the bang of anauctioneer’s gavel.
It signals the end of an antique collection, the breakup of a farm or the dispersal of family heirlooms. “Sold!” cries an auctioneer, and someone walks away with your father’s favorite chair.
